Title: Opportunity
Author: Jedi Bubbles
Rating: PG
Period: YJK, before the third arc
Genre: one-shot
Summary: It's Jaina and Zekk in a tree. Very short. Inspired by the #5 theme: Outsides, from The Ultimate Fanfic Challenge. I'm not doing the contest, just seeing if I can write a story for all the themes.
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She was dangling her feet high above the ground, sitting on a thick branch in a Massassi tree. Tionne had roped her into helping with the younger Jedi students and today they were learning to lower and find signatures in the Force. Basically, it was hide-and-seek with the Force. And now, she was waiting to be found by the person who was "it".
There was a thump and the branch rocked a little as another person landed next to her. They slung an arm around her shoulder and said, "Hey, Jaina, fancy meeting you here."
"Hi, Zekk. Found any of the kids yet?" She grinned at his mock-offended expression.
"Jaina, don't insult me. What d'you think I did for most of youth? Sing show tunes on the street?" Zekk failed to keep a straight face as he looked at her and a smile slipped on his face.
"Well, you never know. Those finding skills of yours must have gotten rusty after all this time," Jaina teased.
He poked her in the stomach. "I spend half of my time trying to find you in this maze of a jungle. My skills have been sharpened to a fine point."
"My mistake, then. Please accept my humblest apologies," Jaina said gravely.
Zekk chuckled and poked her again. Jaina shrieked and tried to squirm away but Zekk pulled her back. She rested her head against his shoulder as she asked lazily, "Shouldn't we be getting back to Tionne and the others?"
"Tionne gave us the afternoon off," Zekk responded.
He gently nudged Jaina away from him then rearranged himself to straddle the broad branch with his back against the tree trunk. Without waiting, Jaina scooted back over, straddled the branch, and leaned back against his chest. Zekk's arms automatically wrapped around her. The two sat in silence, ignoring the heat of the jungle and the discomfort brought on from their combined body heats, quite content with each other's presence in the Force. Distantly, they could hear sounds of rambunctious children being herded back to the Jedi temple. Soon the combination of humidity, heat, and chirping birds lured the pair to sleep.
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Jaina awoke to the sound and feeling of a violent sneeze. She was pressed against Zekk's right arm as he turned away. He muttered something about being allergic to her hair. She gave drowsy laugh and resettled herself in his arms. She dozed off again, listening to Zekk mumble.
The second time Jaina woke up was in a considerably less violent manner. Zekk was lightly tracing patterns in the sunlight with the Force, his arms firmly wrapped around her. She sleepily watched as the patterns of light dipped through the shadows created by the leafy Massassi trees. He brushed her mind in a brief greeting as he halted his small-scale light show.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you," Zekk murmured.
"You didn't," Jaina reassured him with a yawn. "What time is it?"
Zekk unwound one arm to look at his wrist chrono. "Bit past lunch."
Jaina grunted and pushed his arms away from her. She then moved so both of her legs would dangle off to one side of the branch. With a happy sigh, she settled back against him and replaced his arms around her. Zekk's fingers lightly traced designs on her arm. Just when she was about to drift off once more, she felt/heard Zekk clear his throat.
"Jaina?" There was a note in his voice that caused her to lean back and look at his face. Zekk scratched behind his left ear for a few moments, something he did when nervous or uncomfortable. His green eyes were fixed at a point on the distant ground. "Jaina, will you uhh… go on a walk with me? Alone?"
Her brow furrowed in confusion. "What d'you mean? We're alone up here."
His laugh was strained. His anxiety was almost palpable through the Force. "You're right but… ahh… Well, you see… I– I…" She leaned forward slightly in anticipation. Hope rose up within in her and a rather silly smile slid onto her face. Zekk finally looked at her, a smile that echoed her own tugging on the corner of his mouth. "Jaina, I've wanted to tell you this for a really long time. I l–"
"Jaina! Zekk! What are you two doing up there? Nothing inappropriate, I hope," Jacen called from the base of the tree.
Just like that, the moment ended. Both attempted to hide their burning disappointment from each other and Jacen. Zekk loosened his arms from Jaina and drew one away while the other went about her shoulder casually. Jaina was torn between the desire to force Zekk to finish his sentence or give Jacen a wedgie with the Force. Resisting both, she called down to her twin, "Just admiring the view."
"Oh, well quit sightseeing nonexistent sights and come get something to eat. I borrowed some food from the mess for you," Jacen yelled. "Don't worry; they don't expect you to return it after you're done."
"All right, we'll be down in a minute," Jaina answered.
Before she could begin to lower herself down, Zekk grabbed her arm to pull her back to him and out of view of the ground below. She caught a glimpse of serious green eyes before he pressed a light kiss to her mouth. Then, he pulled back and nimbly started to climb down. Jaina clumsily followed, wondering if that had been a sign of what would have happened if Jacen had not shown up. Just in case, as she went down, Jaina cursed her twin, his timing, and vowed to slip gelatin in his bed at the next opportunity.
Fin
It's short. But I said that before, didn't I? R&R if you want. I'd appreciate input but no one has to if they don't want to.